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Our take: Sports teams need transparency

York Daily Record/Sunday News editorial

Updated:
09/06/2013 11:42:26 AM EDT

The York Young Revolution is a terrific affiliate for the York Revolution.

It makes sense on a few levels. The team, through its partnership with the youth baseball program, gets kids interested in baseball, an interest that could develop into a long bond with the local minor-league franchise. And the kids get to play big-time youth baseball, on a team that travels to games and tournaments outside of York County and Pennsylvania.

It has the potential to strengthen not just the Revolution, but also the community, providing opportunities for kids to play baseball and develop skills.

It should be a win-win. But some parents - who have made substantial monetary contributions to the youth baseball program - are feeling that they contributed money to the organization without knowing how that money would be used.

It is an expensive proposition, having a child play for the Revolution squad. The registration fee is $550. Parents also have to participate in fundraisers. Some contributed additional money out of their own pockets. One couple, it was reported, paid $850 - the registration fee and an additional contribution of $300 - for their son to play for the team. That was also in addition to the more than $600 they raised through fundraisers and sponsorships.

It seems expensive. But it is an expensive proposition to field a travel team - competing at a high level at top-notch facilities. You have travel, uniforms, equipment - it adds up.

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But to some parents, the numbers didn't add up.

That couple looked into the expenses and found that they had contributed $307 more than was needed to cover the cost of their son's participation in the program. A spread-sheet provided by the team indicated that some players' families had contributed more than was needed to cover expenses, while others, not as successful in fundraising, had not.

Some parents want the excess money they paid to be refunded. One said it's not the money, it's the principle.

They said they were never told that what they were contributing was just that - a contribution to a nonprofit organization.

"It was never described as a donation," said Matt Ford, a parent of a player from Windsor Township.

Parents said they were never provided anything in writing that explained the organization's fiscal policies. They thought they were paying for their children's expenses, not making a donation to the organization in general.

The organization didn't respond to specific questions about the program's financial policies. It did release a statement explaining that donors make contributions to support the organization's overall charitable mission. It told parents, in an email, that donations did not to pay expenses for specific players.

The organization's statement also said discussions and transactions "between a not-for-profit organization and its members are properly conducted between the board and the members directly, and should not be conducted through, or influenced, by media attention."

Well, too late for that.

It's unfortunate that the York Young Revolution, which is a separate legal entity from the minor league team, would take that kind of stance. If anything, the story suggests that the organization needs to be more transparent, not less.

What this seems to come down to is a failure to communicate effectively. Had the Young Revolution clearly communicated its financial policies to parents, it might not have become an issue.

To torture another baseball analogy, this controversy is akin to a third-base coach not holding up a runner at third and the runner being thrown out at home.

It might have been avoided with better communication.

This editorial expresses the opinions of the York Daily Record/Sunday News Editorial Board: